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This May has been super busy. Two of our kiddos have birthdays, I'm currently working on 2 different book series for the first time, and we have the typical End of the School Year flurry of activity when every day seems to be a spirit day and all my kids forget their lunches at home.

Also, May has brought something extra exciting... the conversion of our Tuff Shed into a Writing Studio. I could not be more thrilled at the end result, but first, let's take a trip into the past... 

As you can see, we used this shed for storage. And it was honestly a great space for that. When you have 4 kids it's great to have a place to store all their off-season clothes, plus I have like a bajillion storage bins for seasonal decor, so.... 

The thing is, my old writing space was in our master bedroom. And while it worked... it also didn't work. It continued to grow. I had 4 bulletin boards, 2 poster-sized art (cover over Dragonboy and the map of Haven), plus an abundance of books, notebooks, dragon plushies... really, my office was starting to take over our bedroom. And so we looked to a more creative solution... our Tuff Shed.

​We hired a general contractor and then watched in wonder as he transformed our little 12x10 shed into the writing nest of my dreams. 

First, there was the insulation, drywall, and electrical installation. Also, the old windows were not insulated so we had to get new ones. 

Next, came the "mud" on the walls (um... it might be called something else, lol) and the fun part: choosing paint colors, flooring, and a new door. In case anyone's interested: 

For the interior, I chose BEHR Laguna Blue and BEHR Swiss Coffee. 

For the exterior, I chose BEHR English Channel.  

Around this time, things really started taking shape. This little shed started looking like an actual office! 

At the end of 3 weeks, the exterior was painted and the shed conversion was finished! The next phase was building bookshelves and choosing a portable AC/heater combo so I won't melt in the studio during the summer! 

Also, I picked out some fun birch tree decals for one of the walls. This process took two hours to install by myself , but it was worth it! This wall is one of my favorite things in my studio. I loved how it turned out—it feels like I'm in a magical forest. And when you write fantasy books, what more could you ask for? :) 

After three weeks of watching the shed transformation, now it was time for the fun part! Most of the things/furniture came from my house. It's still not completely finished (I have a few things to hang on the walls) but overall, it feels SO COZY. I'm having so much fun filling the space with all  the magic and whimsy I want. 

I am so thankful to have such a beautiful space to create stories. I'm hoping the sheer cuteness of it will translate into more productivity!  That's how it works, right...? :) 

It's HERE! The GORGEOUSLY STUNNING cover! 

Honestly, I've had this beauty on my computer for months and months, but I've had to wait until TODAY to share it with the world (publishing rules are that an author waits until the book is available for preorder before the cover is revealed).

My official cover reveal was with the awesome Mixed up Files blog, and it includes an interview with me and the extraordinarily talented illustrator, Ilse Gort. You can check out the reveal and full interviews here, but I wanted to share the first question: 

 Q:  Tell us about the characters we see in this beautiful cover art. 

A: Yay, I’m so happy to introduce you to them! My story has four main characters, each with their own POV chapters, and I’m so thrilled they all made it onto the cover. 
 
Blue is a stable boy who is later transformed into a dragon in order to save the world. The book begins with his story, which is where the title, Dragonboy, comes from. He’s a young, teenage dragon who hasn’t yet lost his feathers (I mean, how cute is that?)! He’s very sweet, shy, and has a bit of a struggle adjusting to his new life as a dragon. 
 
River is a (very reluctant!) dragon rider, who happens to be super afraid of heights. Her lifelong dream was to become the Lead Harvester (magic gardener) for her village, but that was all ruined when she was accidentally chosen as Blue’s rider. River is incredibly clever, confident, and tends to take things a bit too seriously. 
 
Wren is kind, curious, and… a little clumsy sometimes. She’s a magic human who is supposed to be bound to her Magic companion (note the little purple cloud of light on the cover), but she forgets the words to the binding spell, and her Magic runs away! Naturally, this gets her into all kinds of trouble, including traveling to the Mainland–enemy territory–to find it. It’s probably worth noting that Wren’s Magic is a character all its own. It has a spunky personality and causes all kinds of trouble–but it’s also super adorable.  
 
Shenli is a Mainlander (a direct enemy of Wren’s people) who is taught to hate all things magic and dragons. He’s 50% charming, 50% cranky, and his family seems to be saddled with never-ending bad luck. He is a soldier boy with many secrets, and he’d do anything to save his mother and little sisters–including partnering with Wren in order to prevent a war. The question is–where do his true loyalties lie?
 

 
​⭐️ Truly, I adore these 4 characters to pieces, and you can learn more about each of them (plus the fox!) here.
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⭐️  Also, you can preorder Heroes of Havensong  here!

 
I have SO appreciated all the love Sveta Dorosheva's been getting this past week as I've given little hints of the map. As many of you have noted, her work is out of this world gorgeous. You can check out some other maps Sveta's created here. 

And I have a surprise for you all! 

Sveta was kind enough to answer some interview questions! I thought you'd appreciate a behind-the-scenes look at the life of a brilliant illustrator.

​So pull up a chair, cozy up, and enjoy the interview. 😊 (And don't worry, I haven't forgotten about the grand finale of this blog post! I've saved it for last!) 

​MR: Can you tell us about some other projects are you working on right now?

SD:  You'll be shocked, but I have two more book maps in the works. 😊 And a book cover (it's a mystery novel). 

MR: Lastly, how can authors or agents contact you if they're interested in working with you?

SD:  My agents are at www.illustrationx.com/contact or [email protected], or you can contact me directly if you just have a question or would like to talk - [email protected]

MR: Thank you so much, Sveta!  

Everyone, you can find Sveta online on her website, Instagram, and Etsy.
Also, I highly recommend her gorgeously illustrated book, The Land of Stone Flowers: A Fairy Guide to Mythical Human Beings , which is absolutely as whimsical and adorable as you'd imagine. 

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I'm reeeeeaaally making you wait for it........

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Here she is! In all her splendor and glory!

I know, right?

I have the original copy of this beauty hanging in my bedroom, and it takes my breath away EVERY. TIME. I. LOOK. AT. IT.
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​Blue is from the kingdom of Gerbera, in the Southern Realm of Haven.
He works as a stable hand for the king. If it were up to him, he'd spend the rest of his life working with horses. In fact, do you notice the Gerberan castle has some fun equestrian details? That's because of Blue!  

​River grew up in the hidden village within Dragon Mountain. Her people grow dragons using magic and her job, as a Harvester, is to grow magical crops. 

As you can see, the Haven map is not only gorgeous, but full of fun details. I cannot wait for you all to read Dragonboy (book 1 of the Heroes of Havensong series) to discover more fun details hiding within the map. 😊 

I love a good fantasy world map.

Like, love.

Ever since I was a kid, I've been drawn to maps in books. Even now, if I book has a map, then I'm already doubly excited to read the story that goes with it. I spent a lot of time studying each geographical landmark and village name. A good map gives you a sense of the story and helps you imagine the author's world in your mind. 

So when I learned that Random House Kids was publishing my children's fantasy novel, one of the first things I wanted to know was if we could include a map.

The short answer was... no.

​There simply wasn't the budget to hire a illustrator. 

But I didn't give up. 

I first tried to draw a map myself, but that didn't end up working out (for many reasons I won't get into here). 

So I looked into hiring someone. My agent gave me a list of illustrators, and as soon as I saw Sveta Dorosheva's work, I fell instantly in love. (I mean, seriously. See for yourself). 

Sveta was an absolute dream to work with. We had many conversations about my book and the tone of the map (magic fantasy!) and she asked about the details of different locations and creatures in my story. 

She sent me the initial sketch (which I loved) and over the next few weeks, she sent pictures of the final map in progress. Amazingly, she draws everything by hand!

As you can see, her attention to detail is out of this world. The final version of the map absolutely took my breath away.

I can honestly say that it's the most beautiful fantasy world map I have ever seen. 

And I can't wait TO SHARE IT WITH YOU! 

I'm actually giving a map reveal sneak preview to all of my newsletter peeps, so if you'd like to join in on the fun, you can sign up here. Also, you'll get updates and announcements on Dragonboy, my debut novel, as we approach publication day. 

In the meantime, stay tuned for more map gorgeousness! ;-)

I'm going to have some very book-shaped news coming soon! 

I'm sitting here blogging right now to try to take my mind off the fact that my mother-in-law is losing her battle with brain cancer. She's been fighting for over 10 years now and this past month has been the worst. 

In the darkest times I turn to my faith, my loved ones, and  reading. Reading has always been a beautiful escape. So, to take my mind off The Sad Things, I decided to share what I've read so far this year and what's next in my TBR pile. 

​Here we go.  

​My recent January reads:

I'm currently reading

I'm a huge Lisa McMann fan and I was SO STOKED to get this ARC. Honestly, it's just what I need right now. I'm about a fifth of the way started, and I'm already loving these five kids. Lisa is a master at creating lovable characters coupled with an irresistible premise! Can't wait to see where this adventure leads. 

What's next: 

I would LOVE to hear what you've been reading (or plan to read) lately! 

This is not an comprehensive list, but here are some of my top favorite reads from this year. 

This year I also got to read my soon-to-be-published friend's book: SIR CALLIE AND THE CHAMPIONS OF HELSTON.

Holy smokes, it was one of the most beautiful, hilarious, and gut-wrenching middle grade fantasy books I've ever read.

​I can't WAIT for all of you to meet SIR CALLIE in 2022 (book cover yet to be revealed--stay tuned)! 

My TBR pile is massive, but here's what's up next for January 2022 : 

I have such a love-hate relationship with revisions, as I imagine most writers do. After all, it's such a feat just to finish writing a book. A writer spends months, or even years, working on their beloved manuscript. Finally getting to type THE END is about as good a feeling as taking a family vacation to Disneyland.

But the truth is it's not really THE END. Because your work isn't done. And as far as what happens next? 

The dreaded REVISIONS process.

This looks different for every writer, and it can definitely feel overwhelming. After much trial and error over the years I've come up with a 5-step process I've found really helpful. I do want to note that there's something that happens between THE END and REVISION TIME, and that's gathering feedback. With a newly-completed manuscript, I send it to 2-3 critique partners to get their overall thoughts. An author with an editor would get notes in form of an edit letter. 

Either way, once you get the feedback, I recommend taking a week or so to let their words and ideas settle. Absorb what you find helpful and shake loose anything that doesn't land with you. Once you have all of these notes/ideas you agree with, then it's time to :
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STEP 1

​Consider this step the brainstorming phase.

After I organize feedback notes, I open a new Word doc and group everything into categories. These usually look something like: Characters, World-Building, Pacing/Momentum, and Miscellaneous. 

Underneath each category header, I make bullet points of all the things I want to work on in the next draft. When it's all done, it looks something like a checklist. I'll often copy/paste directly from the edit letter if there's something specific I want to make sure to tackle. 

This process can take anywhere from a few days to a week, depending on the amount of "problems" I'm trying to fix. 

STEP 2

On to the hardest step-- REVISE! 

This is where I open up my manuscript in Scrivener (which I use to write all my books). I copy/paste my bullet-point notes (from my checklist) into  each chapter. Example, if I have a character who needs to take more risks, I would copy/paste the phrase "Character A- take risks!" at the beginning of each chapter where that character appears. 

This can take awhile, but I find it incredibly useful. Once I'm done adding all my checklist bullet points, I then have each chapter peppered with notes. It puts me in a good headspace (not to mention it keeps me focused on my revision goals) to dive into the actually revisions.

This part of the process can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. It depends what kind of deadlines I'm under and whether or not I'm in the creative zone. And while this step is inarguably SO MUCH WORK and will--at some point--make you want to pull your hair out, hang in there! Your hard work will pay off and your story is going to thank you for it. 
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STEP 3

This is definitely the easiest step. :) After weeks or months of actively pouring your heart and efforts into revisions, I find it immensely beneficial to walk away from it. I try to take at least a week where I'm not thinking about my story at all. I might work on another project or take time to pursue other interests. 

After my time away, I'm able to come back to my story with fresh and eager eyes. Which leads to the next step:

STEP 4

With fresh eyes, I reread the entire story--and NOT on the computer. This is my favorite part of the process because I get to see how all my hard work has paid off from Step 2. :) 

I prefer to read on the kindle, but I know other authors who like to print their manuscript and read it. Either way is fine, as long as you have a way to take notes/highlight as you go. As mentioned above, I do not recommend re-reading on the computer. Allow your eyes to read your wonderful words in a new way. It's amazing how different the story feels when you experience it on a new medium. 

This part of the process usually takes me a day or two--depending how much time I can hole myself away from my kiddos. :) 

STEP 5

Once I've finished reading, I go through all my highlights/notes from my kindle and transfer the changes to the manuscript. I'll also take this time to do a "whole project search" for words or phrases I overuse or inconsistent character name spellings. I'll make sure my chapter numbers are in the right order. That my font size and paragraph spacing is correct. Basically, I'm cleaning up everything best I can. 

This part of the process usually takes my 2-3 days. And when it's all over... (see bonus step):

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After step 5 is completed, it's time to CELEBRATE! 

Revising a manuscript is not for the faint-hearted and you should be proud of all you've accomplished! It's time to pull out your favorite pint of ice cream or pour yourself a glass of your prefered beverage--you've earned it! 
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It's been awhile since I've written, so I thought it would be fun to do a #FridayReads post. 

For the past several months, I've been reading through Lisa McMann's amazing UNWANTEDS  series AND the UNWANTEDS QUESTS series.

You guys, I cannot recommend these books enough. If you are a fan of MG fantasy/adventure, promise me you'll check out the first Unwanteds book like... yesterday! Great for ages 10+ (even 8+ for kids who can tackle a full-length novel). 
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These books have everything.

Adventure, friendship, first-crushes, love and loss, super fun magic, talking stone statues, whimsy, courage, and... did I mention adventure? 

​Trust me-- you won't be disappointed! And with 7 books in each series (total of 14 book!) you'll get to spend time in these books for a good long while. :)